Failure to Diagnose Breast Cancer

Syracuse Lawyers for Wrongful Death Arising Out of Failure to Diagnose

Breast cancer is a well-studied illness and there are screening guidelines that have been put in place so that doctors can—hopefully—catch it before it progresses or metastasizes. Failure to diagnose breast cancer can result in severe and permanent consequences that necessitate expensive and painful surgeries, along with the removal of breast tissue. A delayed diagnosis of breast cancer could even result in wrongful death. As the family member of a person who died for failure to diagnose breast cancer, you should give the experienced Syracuse medical malpractice lawyers of DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Attorneys a call to determine whether you have a viable claim.

Wrongful Death Arising Out of Failure to Diagnose Breast Cancer

Under New York law, a wrongful death is one that is caused by neglect, wrongful act, or default. You may be able to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit in connection with a failure to diagnose breast cancer where the decedent could have pursued a medical malpractice lawsuit had she survived. Many different kinds of events can constitute professional negligence in connection with breast cancer including failure to conduct a breast biopsy, failure to conduct a differential diagnosis, a misinterpreted mammogram, miscommunication or failure to follow up on providing a patient with an appropriate referral or test results.

A personal representative of a decedent’s estate can file a wrongful death lawsuit for failure to diagnose breast cancer. As a family member, you are not able to bring the claim unless you are the personal representative of the estate. Often the personal representative of a decedent’s estate is a spouse or adult child. A wrongful death lawsuit has to be filed within the statute of limitations period; this is typically two and a half years from the date of someone’s death in a failure to diagnose breast cancer case.

In order to prove a defendant bears liability for their failure to diagnose breast cancer, our Syracuse lawyers will need to prove: (1) you were owed a professional standard of care by the defendant, (2) the defendant deviated from the professional standard of care, (3) the deviation caused wrongful death, and (4) damages. The professional standard of care in your case would depend on what other reasonably prudent health care providers in the same specialty and geographic region would have done when faced with the same or similar circumstances.

Damages for Failure to Diagnose

If we are able to establish an Upstate New York defendant’s liability in your wrongful death lawsuit, we may be able to recover damages. These are awarded to a decedent’s estate or survivors to compensate them for a loved one’s death. The quantity of damages awarded will depend on the particular circumstances of death. Damages may be awarded for losses like funeral expenses, burial expenses, reasonable health care expenses related to the decedent’s illness or injury, the value of support and services provided to a family, the value of parental nurturing and care to surviving children, survivors’ lost inheritance, and the decedent’s conscious pain and suffering because of breast cancer that progressed.

Often those who suffer with cancer and near death do experience significant pain. They may need medications for pain management, but even that may be insufficient to address the pain. Nothing truly makes up for those losses, but it can be appropriate to hold accountable a health care provider whose failure to diagnose breast cancer resulted in that pain.

As of this writing, the governor is still reviewing the Grieving Families Act that passed with bipartisan support and would allow those with close relationships to a decedent who suffered a wrongful death to claim emotional damages in their lawsuits.

Consult a Seasoned Syracuse Medical Malpractice Firm If a loved one died due to a doctor’s failure to diagnose breast cancer, you should talk with our seasoned Syracuse wrongful death lawyers. DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Attorneys has more than 30 years of experience in Upstate New York seeking best results for the families of deceased breast cancer patients. We represent clients Ithaca, Cooperstown, Oswego, Lyons, Albany, Oneida, Canandaigua, Lowville, Wampsville, Watertown, Auburn, Buffalo, Utica, Rochester, Herkimer, Elmira, Binghamton, and throughout Upstate New York. For a free consultation, complete our online form or call us at 833-200-2000.